For purposes of assessing the visual quality of a video signal that has passed through, e.g., a transmission system, a transcoder, or equivalent system—potentially impairing its quality —, it is desirable to compare the original signal with the processed signal. The processing imposes a certain amount of latency onto the signal, so a direct side-by-side comparison is not possible, unless the original signal is also delayed by the same amount. Conventional techniques, however, do not do so.
Hence, there is a need for more robust and scalable solutions for implementing media content streaming or playback, and, more particularly, to methods, systems, and apparatuses for implementing media stream synchronization.